S.F. asks court to allow bike improvements

Published 4:00 am, Tuesday, December 2, 2008

The San Francisco city attorney went to court Monday seeking permission to modify six stretches of roadway to make the streets safer for bicyclists.

Normally, the city could make the improvements without judicial intervention. But in 2006, the San Francisco Superior Court blocked the city from enacting any improvements intended to benefit cyclists without special permission.

The ruling was the result of a lawsuit that demanded the city conduct a full-blown environmental review of the San Francisco Bicycle Plan, which outlines proposals for new bike paths and other projects to promote cycling in the city, such as the installation of bike racks and a pilot project to allow bikes on the Muni light-rail system.

A draft of the court-ordered environmental analysis was released last week. Final certification is not expected until the spring.

This April, the city got the court's permission to make improvements to the notoriously dangerous intersection of Fell and Masonic streets at the Golden Gate Park Panhandle. Now, City Attorney Dennis Herrera, with the backing of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, is seeking a judge's approval to make changes along six other bike routes where there have been a high number of collisions involving bikes and motor vehicles.

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In addition, the city wants authorization to install bike racks in two locations to reduce the number of parked bikes blocking pedestrian access.

"We are confident that our motion today makes a compelling case for how we can best address and alleviate hazards to cyclists and pedestrians while respecting the limits of the court's injunction," Herrera said Monday.

The most controversial proposal is aimed at the intersection of Octavia Boulevard and Market Street, where there's an on-ramp to the Central Freeway.

At least 15 bikers traveling eastbound on Market Street have been struck by vehicles making illegal right turns onto the freeway since the ramp opened in 2005.

The city has modified the intersection numerous times in an attempt to reduce the danger, including putting up warning signs and erecting a concrete barrier to keep vehicles from turning onto the freeway. But, city officials say, the problem still exists.

Now, the city's chief traffic engineer wants to eliminate the portion of the eastbound Market Street bike lane that crosses Octavia Boulevard and force vehicles and cyclists to share a lane. The thinking is that if they can't ride side by side, the chance of a car or truck turning into the path of a biker is reduced.

The recommendation was derided by Leah Shahum, executive director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. "The city wants to remove a bike lane at the most dangerous intersection. That's a step backward," she said.

The other proposed changes the city envisions are less drastic and focus on new signs and roadway markings along well-traveled bike routes running down Polk Street, Valencia Street, Third Street, Folsom Street and the downtown stretch of Market Street. In addition, city officials want to install bike racks near Market and Church streets and on Dolores and Guerrero streets near 18th Street.

Rob Anderson, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit that led to the bike plan injunction, could not be reached for comment Monday.

A hearing date on the city's proposed modifications to the court order has been set for Dec. 23.

Bike-safety requests

San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera has gone to court to get the go-ahead for eight projects intended to improve the safety of cyclists and pedestrians.

Proposed location to remove bike lane and create a shared lane for motor vehicles and bikes

-- Market Street and Octavia Boulevard, where 15 motor vehicle-bike collisions have been reported since 2005.

Proposed modifications to signs and roadway markings

-- Polk Street between Beach and Market streets, where 73 motor vehicle-bike collisions have been reported since 2003.

-- Valencia Street, where 65 motor vehicle-bike accidents have been reported since 2003.

-- Third Street, where 32 motor vehicle-bike collisions have been reported since 2003.

-- Folsom Street between 13th Street and the Embarcadero, where 52 bicycle-related injury accidents have been reported since 2003.

-- Market Street between Eighth Street and the Embarcadero, where, combined with the stretch of Market street running west to Castro Street, 179 bicycle injury accidents have been reported since 2003.

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